Bondi Has Another New Poké Bowl Joint

Sydney's poké explosion continues, this time with Hooked on Poké opening its doors along Bondi Beach. Owned by the former manager of North Bondi Italian, Marcus Lalak, the joint focuses on locally and sustainably sourced fish in fresh-to-order dishes that boast sauces made from secret recipes.

The menu at Hooked on Poké may have been inspired by the traditional Hawaiian mainstay but it also takes direction from the Los Angeles version and has adopted Japanese and Korean flavours. Customers can create their own bowl or order from five 'HOP Faves' with recommended ingredient combinations — among these is the signature tuna poké bowl, made with line-caught and sashimi-grade yellow fin which has been cubed and coated in a house-made, spicy soy sauce.

Apart from the tuna, they're offering up salmon and snapper, as well as poached chicken and tofu options. If you're creating your own, you can choose from a base of soba noodles, iceberg lettuce and brown or white rice, along with a wide range of toppings, including wasabi peas, grated beetroot, spicy kimchi, wakame, house-made pickles and dashi daikon. For something significantly on-trend locally, you can pick toppings of sweet potato crisps and roasted miso cauliflower.

Lalak brings two decades in the hospitality industry to this new venture, which is jumping on the poké train a bit late in the game. What could set Hooked on Poké apart from the competition, though, is its series of sauces and dressings that were specially developed for the restaurant and use ingredients including yuzu kosho, miso and sriracha. These 'secret recipes' took over one-hundred hours to perfect and are meant to give each bowl a signature flavour that you can't get anywhere else.

Hooked On Poké is now open for lunch and dinner at 145 Glenayr Street, Bondi Beach.

Images: Alana Dimou.